Sleeping Sickness
Towards the elimination of sleeping sickness
For more than 100 years, ITM has been putting its scientific expertise at the service of the fight against sleeping sickness or human African trypanosomiasis (HAT). The disease occurs to this day, primarily in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The institute developed the world's most widely used sleeping sickness test decades ago and still produces it today. In addition, ITM is fully engaged in the research and development of new diagnostic tests, mainly the molecular kind. Those will play an important role in the new phase of sleeping sickness monitoring.
ITM plays a leading role in supporting sleeping sickness control programmes in the DRC. Together with Congolese and international partners, the institute succeeded in drastically reducing the annual number of sleeping sickness cases, reaching the first goal of the World Health Organisation (WHO) to eliminate sleeping sickness as a public health problem in the country. The ultimate goal of the intensive sleeping sickness control programmes is to stop the transmission of the disease completely by 2030, by interrupting the transmission of the parasite between the tsetse fly and humans.
All HAT control projects are funded by the Belgian government and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and are coordinated by ITM. They were renewed in 2021.
Units
Labs
WHO Collaborating Centre for Research and Training on human African trypanosomiasis diagnostics
Partners in Congo
Programme National de Lutte contreTrypanosomiase Humaine Africaine (PNLTHA)
École de Santé Publique de l'Université de Lubumbashi (ESP/UNILU)
Centre de Recherche en Santé de Kimpese (CRSK) de l'Institut Médical Evangélique
International partners
Directorate-General for Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Aid (DGD)
Stop transmission of gambiense human African trypanosomiasis
Through facilitated diagnosis, increased acceptability and access to treatment, StrogHAT will contribute to achieving the goal of stopping gHAT transmission by 2030, as defined by the World Health Organization.
Test for sleeping sickness developed and manufactured by ITM
For decades, a sleeping sickness test has been used all over the world that ITM not only developed but also manufactures to this day.Research themes
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Bacteria have found various ways to develop resistance (AMR), of which resistance to antibiotics is a problem reaching across many different domains. -
Arboviruses such as dengue, chikungunya and Zika are urgent public health threats in tropical and subtropical areas.
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By combining efforts on biological, human and societal aspects of the disease, ITM hopes to control and ultimately eliminate malaria in the long term.
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Neglected (tropical) diseases are high on the agenda. For many years, ITM has been actively involved in research on NTDs, in particular on leishmaniasis, leprosy and sleeping sickness.
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Before vaccines or drugs can be used in the general population, their safety and effectiveness are thoroughly investigated in clinical trials.
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The research of ITM on the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and AIDS is of inestimable value.
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For more than 10 years, ITM has been actively monitoring exotic mosquitoes in Belgium.
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ITM is closely monitoring the development of the mpox disease, both in Belgium and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
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We help improve sexual and reproductive health in the world by combining scientific research, advanced education, policy support and capacity-strengthening initiatives.
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ITM’s research on tuberculosis (TB) is world-renowned. Its shorter combination treatment for resistant tuberculosis was a worldwide breakthrough. Our researchers study new diagnostics and case detection techniques, with the largest public collection of TB strains in the world at their disposal.
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EcoHealth is an interdepartmental group that unites researchers from different backgrounds and disciplines. We all recognise the need for comprehensive, systemic approaches to address current health challenges that emerge at the interface between humans, animals and their broader natural, social and political environments.
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Since the beginning, ITM has been providing medical services to people returning ill from overseas. As such, ITM accumulated profound knowledge of tropical diseases, as well as STIs and HIV.
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The right to health implies that everybody, everywhere should have access to the needed essential health products, included but not limited to diagnostics, vaccines and medicines.
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Clinical, epidemiological and diagnostics studies, secondary analyses of health data and BioSamples, behavioural studies or any other studies that involve the participation of human individuals, should yield social value and be scientifically justified and ethically sound.
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In a highly interconnected world, ITM continues to innovate and develop its outbreak research capacity.
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ITM has decades of experience fighting infectious diseases and curbing epidemics. We are fully committed to helping stop the COVID-19 pandemic that is threatening the world. To this end, we work together with partners at home and abroad.
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Ebola is a deadly disease that was co-discovered in 1976 by researchers of the institute. ITM has been closely monitoring subsequent outbreaks on the African continent, as well as contributing to new developments in diagnostics and treatment.
